A protest backed by Bologna’s left-wing mayor descended into hours of violence as rioters hurled explosives at police and erected barricades across the city center.
Left-wing activists attacked police, built barricades, and set fire to a municipal vehicle in the Italian city of Bologna on Monday during a protest over the death of a Moroccan man during his arrest.
Hundreds joined the demonstration following the death of 42-year-old Abderrahim Fakir, who died on Sunday while officers were attempting to restrain him in the city’s Pilastro district.
The protest began peacefully in Piazza del Nettuno before moving towards the prefecture, where demonstrators confronted officers in riot gear and chanted “murderers” and “everyone hates the police.”
Violence broke out after masked activists pushed against police lines and began throwing bottles, chairs, firecrackers, and pieces of concrete at officers. Police responded with batons, tear gas, and water cannon.
Rioters constructed makeshift barricades from metal fencing, damaged police vehicles, and tore up parts of the pavement to use as missiles. Later in the evening, they smashed a vehicle belonging to the city council, pushed it into the road, and set it alight.
The fire spread close to surrounding buildings before firefighters could reach the scene through streets littered with debris and damaged vehicles.
Eleven people were reportedly injured, including six police officers and five demonstrators. One officer and one protester were taken to hospital.
The demonstration had received support from Bologna’s left-wing mayor, Matteo Lepore, who had called for “truth and justice” over Fakir’s death before investigators had established how he died.
Domenico Pianese, head of the Coisp police union, accused Lepore of helping to create a climate of hostility towards officers.
“What is happening in Bologna is the direct and predictable consequence of the political irresponsibility of those who fuel suspicion against the police,” he said.
Pianese argued that the mayor had “paved the way for the hatred of the antagonistic movement” by suggesting that justice was being denied before prosecutors had completed their work.
Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini also condemned the “thugs” responsible for the disorder.
“An irresponsible and anti-Italian Left is fuelling hatred towards those who wear a uniform and defend us,” the Lega leader said, adding that he would visit Bologna to express his support for the police.
Fakir’s death remains under investigation. Officers had been called to the Pilastro neighborhood after residents reported a man behaving aggressively. Fakir had allegedly confronted a driver attempting to enter a garage and damaged his vehicle.
Police reportedly informed emergency services that Fakir appeared to be experiencing a psychiatric crisis. Two officers and a local resident helped restrain him, while police used pepper spray before placing him in handcuffs.
A short video circulated online shows officers holding Fakir on the ground, with one appearing to press down on his back. Prosecutors cautioned that the incident lasted considerably longer than the footage published on social media suggests.
Investigators have obtained a 39-minute recording from an officer’s body camera, along with calls made to the emergency services. An independent expert will examine the recording, while an autopsy will seek to determine the cause of death and whether the pepper spray, an underlying health condition, or another factor played a role.
Two police officers and four medical workers present during the operation have been recorded as participants in the case under a new procedure intended to prevent officers from being automatically treated as criminal suspects when their actions may have been legally justified.
The Italian interior ministry has said the officers followed established procedures and promised full cooperation with investigators. Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi urged the public to allow prosecutors to establish the facts.
The Fakir family’s lawyer, Fabio Anselmo, also condemned the rioting, describing it as a “crude and violent exploitation” of the death and an attack on the family’s search for the truth.
